Senate Study Bill 3063 - Introduced SENATE FILE _____ BY (PROPOSED COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE BILL BY CHAIRPERSON DAWSON) A BILL FOR An Act relating to self-service storage insurance, and 1 including applicability provisions. 2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 3 TLSB 5656XC (1) 88 ko/rn
S.F. _____ Section 1. NEW SECTION . 522F.1 Definitions. 1 As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise 2 requires: 3 1. “Commissioner” means the commissioner of insurance. 4 2. “Endorsee” means an employee or an authorized 5 representative of an owner authorized to sell or offer 6 self-service storage insurance at one or more of the owner’s 7 locations. 8 3. “Financial institution” means any bank, savings and loan 9 association, credit union, or other entity subject to Title 10 XIII, subtitle 2. 11 4. “Insurance producer” means the same as defined in section 12 522B.1. 13 5. “Insurer” means the same as defined in section 522B.1. 14 6. “License” means the same as defined in section 522B.1. 15 7. “Limited lines producer” means the same as defined in 16 section 522B.1. 17 8. “Location” means any physical location in this state, or 18 any internet site, call center site, or other location at which 19 an owner engages in transactions related to a self-service 20 storage facility located in this state. 21 9. “Occupant” means a person, or the person’s successors or 22 assigns, entitled to the use of space at a self-service storage 23 facility under a rental agreement. 24 10. “Owner” means the owner, operator, property management 25 company, lessor, or sublessor of a self-service storage 26 facility. “Owner” does not mean an occupant. 27 11. “Person” means the same as defined in section 522B.1. 28 12. “Personal property” means movable property not affixed 29 to land, including goods, wares, merchandise, household items, 30 and furnishings. 31 13. “Rental agreement” means any written agreement that 32 establishes or modifies the terms or conditions concerning an 33 occupant’s use of space at a self-service storage facility. 34 14. “Self-service storage facility” or “facility” means 35 -1- LSB 5656XC (1) 88 ko/rn 1/ 10
S.F. _____ any real property used for the purpose of renting or leasing 1 individual storage space to occupants who have access to the 2 space for the purpose of storing personal property, but does 3 not include a garage used primarily for storage of motor 4 vehicles, or a repository at a financial institution used by 5 the financial institution’s customers for storage of money or 6 valuables. If an owner issues a warehouse receipt, bill of 7 lading, or other document of title for an occupant’s personal 8 property stored at the facility, the owner and the occupant are 9 subject to chapter 554, article 7, and this chapter shall not 10 apply. 11 15. “Self-service storage insurance” means insurance 12 providing coverage for the loss of, or damage to, personal 13 property that is contained in a storage space at a facility, or 14 is in transit to or from the storage space, during the term of a 15 rental agreement covering an occupant’s use of storage space at 16 the facility. 17 16. “Sell” means the same as defined in section 522B.1. 18 17. “Solicit” means the same as defined in section 522B.1. 19 18. “Supervising entity” means a person licensed as an 20 insurance producer under chapter 522B who is appointed by an 21 insurer to supervise the administration of self-service storage 22 insurance at an owner’s locations. 23 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION . 522F.2 License required. 24 1. Except as provided in subsection 2, an owner or endorsee 25 shall not sell or solicit self-service storage insurance 26 unless the owner is licensed pursuant to chapter 522B as a 27 self-service storage insurance limited lines producer and the 28 sale or solicitation of self-service storage insurance is in 29 conjunction with and incidental to the rental of self-service 30 storage to an occupant. 31 2. A license shall not be required for an owner or an 32 endorsee, on behalf of an insurer, to display and provide 33 promotional information regarding self-service storage 34 insurance to occupants and prospective occupants. 35 -2- LSB 5656XC (1) 88 ko/rn 2/ 10
S.F. _____ 3. Any owner or endorsee that has solicited or sold 1 self-service storage insurance before July 1, 2020, shall 2 obtain a self-service storage insurance limited lines producer 3 license on or before October 1, 2020, or shall be prohibited 4 from continuing to solicit or sell self-service storage 5 insurance. Any owner or endorsee that begins to solicit or 6 sell self-service storage insurance on or after July 1, 2020, 7 shall obtain a self-service storage limited lines insurance 8 producer license prior to soliciting or selling self-service 9 storage insurance. 10 Sec. 3. NEW SECTION . 522F.3 Application for license —— 11 requirements. 12 1. The commissioner shall issue a self-service storage 13 insurance limited lines producer license to an owner pursuant 14 to section 522B.6 if the owner satisfies the requirements of 15 section 522B.5 and as part of the application for the license 16 the owner provides all of the following information: 17 a. The physical address of the home office of the owner’s 18 facility and the physical address and internet sites of all 19 locations. 20 b. If less than fifty percent of the facility’s revenue 21 is derived from the sale of self-service storage insurance, 22 the owner shall provide the name, residential address, and 23 any other information required by the commissioner for one 24 employee or one officer of the facility, or for one employee of 25 a supervising entity, designated as the person responsible for 26 the owner’s compliance with the requirements of this chapter. 27 c. If fifty percent or more of the facility’s revenue is 28 derived from the sale of self-service storage insurance, the 29 owner shall provide the residential address and any other 30 information required by the commissioner for all officers, 31 directors, and shareholders of record that have ten percent or 32 more beneficial ownership of the facility. 33 2. An owner applying for a self-service storage limited 34 lines producer license shall be exempt from the examination 35 -3- LSB 5656XC (1) 88 ko/rn 3/ 10
S.F. _____ requirements pursuant to section 522B.4 and section 522B.5, 1 subsection 1, paragraph “d” . 2 3. An owner applying to renew a self-service storage limited 3 lines producer license shall be exempt from the continuing 4 education requirements pursuant to section 522B.6, subsection 5 3. 6 Sec. 4. NEW SECTION . 522F.4 Endorsees —— conditions and 7 limitations. 8 1. An owner licensed pursuant to section 522F.3 may 9 authorize an endorsee to solicit or sell self-service storage 10 insurance to occupants and prospective occupants at any 11 location. 12 2. An endorsee shall not be required to be licensed as an 13 insurance producer if all of the following requirements are 14 met: 15 a. The endorsee is eighteen years of age or older. 16 b. The insurer issuing the self-service storage insurance 17 either directly supervises, or appoints a supervising entity 18 to supervise, the administration of the self-service storage 19 insurance, including the development and implementation of a 20 training program for endorsees pursuant to subsection 3. 21 c. The owner has filed an affidavit with the commissioner, 22 in the form and manner required by the commissioner, 23 acknowledging that the owner is legally responsible for the 24 actions of all endorsees relating to an endorsee’s solicitation 25 or sale of self-service storage insurance in conjunction with 26 and incidental to the rental of storage space to an occupant at 27 any location. 28 3. An owner, or the supervising entity, shall provide 29 a training program for all endorsees who solicit or sell 30 self-service storage insurance. The training program shall 31 meet all of the following requirements: 32 a. The training shall be delivered to each endorsee 33 who sells or offers self-service storage insurance at any 34 location. The owner, or the supervising entity, shall maintain 35 -4- LSB 5656XC (1) 88 ko/rn 4/ 10
S.F. _____ documentation evidencing that each endorsee has completed the 1 training. The documentation and all training materials shall 2 be made available to the commissioner within five business days 3 of the commissioner’s request to review the documentation or 4 the training materials. 5 b. If the training is conducted in an electronic form, the 6 supervising entity shall implement a supplemental education 7 program regarding self-service storage insurance that is 8 conducted and overseen by an employee of the supervising entity 9 who is licensed as an insurance producer pursuant to chapter 10 522B. 11 c. The training program shall include basic information 12 about self-service storage insurance and shall address all of 13 the following: 14 (1) No endorsee shall advertise or otherwise represent the 15 endorsee as a licensed insurance producer unless the endorsee 16 holds a license. 17 (2) No endorsee shall solicit or sell self-service storage 18 insurance except in conjunction with and incidental to the 19 rental of storage space to an occupant at a location. 20 4. An endorsee shall not be paid directly by an insurer, 21 and an owner shall not pay an endorsee commission or compensate 22 an endorsee based primarily on the number of occupants the 23 endorsee enrolls for self-storage insurance. An owner 24 may, however, include an endorsee’s performance related 25 to soliciting or selling self-service storage insurance to 26 occupants and prospective occupants in an overall performance 27 incentive compensation program the owner offers for all 28 endorsees. 29 Sec. 5. NEW SECTION . 522F.5 Registry of locations. 30 The owner, or the supervising entity, shall maintain a 31 registry of all locations and of all endorsees at each location 32 that are authorized to sell or solicit self-service storage 33 insurance. The owner, or the supervising entity, shall make 34 the registry available to the commissioner within five business 35 -5- LSB 5656XC (1) 88 ko/rn 5/ 10
S.F. _____ days of the commissioner’s request for the registry. 1 Sec. 6. NEW SECTION . 522F.6 Required documents and 2 disclosures. 3 1. At any location where self-service storage insurance 4 is offered to occupants or prospective occupants, written or 5 electronic documents shall be available to the occupants or 6 prospective occupants and must include all of the following: 7 a. A summary of the material terms of the self-service 8 storage insurance coverage, including all of the following: 9 (1) The identity of the insurer. 10 (2) The identity of the supervising entity, if applicable. 11 (3) All benefits provided by the coverage. 12 (4) The key terms and conditions of the coverage, including 13 all exclusions. 14 (5) The amount of any deductibles and the process for paying 15 a deductible. 16 b. A summary of the claims process. 17 c. A disclosure specifying that self-service storage 18 insurance may be a duplication of coverage already provided by 19 an occupant’s or prospective occupant’s homeowner’s insurance 20 policy, renter’s insurance policy, or other source of insurance 21 coverage. 22 d. A disclosure specifying that self-service storage 23 insurance is not required as a condition of obtaining a rental 24 agreement. 25 e. Any other disclosures specified by rule as adopted by the 26 commissioner. 27 2. The written or electronic documents provided pursuant to 28 subsection 1 shall not be subject to filing with, or be subject 29 to the approval of, the commissioner. 30 Sec. 7. NEW SECTION . 522F.7 Authority conveyed by license. 31 1. All charges for self-service storage insurance on a 32 master, corporate, group, or individual policy basis may be 33 billed and collected by an owner or an endorsee, and the owner 34 may receive compensation for performing billing and collection 35 -6- LSB 5656XC (1) 88 ko/rn 6/ 10
S.F. _____ services if all of the following conditions are met: 1 a. If any charges for self-service storage insurance are 2 not included in the costs associated with an occupant’s rental 3 of self-service storage space, the owner shall itemize the 4 charges for the self-service storage insurance separately on 5 the occupant’s bill. 6 b. If any charges for self-service storage insurance are 7 included in the costs associated with an occupant’s rental 8 of self-service storage space, the owner shall clearly and 9 conspicuously disclose that information to the occupant in 10 writing. 11 2. All moneys received by an owner or endorsee from an 12 occupant for self-service storage insurance shall be considered 13 funds held in trust by the owner in a fiduciary capacity for 14 the benefit of the insurer that issues the self-service storage 15 insurance. An owner that bills and collects such moneys shall 16 not be required to maintain the moneys in a segregated account 17 if any of the following apply: 18 a. The owner is authorized by the insurer to hold the funds 19 in an alternate manner. 20 b. The owner remits the funds to the supervising entity as 21 required by the supervising entity. 22 Sec. 8. NEW SECTION . 522F.8 License suspension, revocation, 23 denial, nonrenewal. 24 The commissioner may suspend, revoke, or refuse to issue or 25 renew an owner’s limited lines self-service storage insurance 26 producer license pursuant to section 522B.11. 27 Sec. 9. NEW SECTION . 522F.9 Rules. 28 The commissioner shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 17A 29 as necessary to implement and administer this chapter. 30 Sec. 10. NEW SECTION . 522F.10 Enforcement. 31 The commissioner may take any action within the 32 commissioner’s authority to enforce compliance with this 33 chapter. 34 Sec. 11. APPLICABILITY. This Act applies to self-service 35 -7- LSB 5656XC (1) 88 ko/rn 7/ 10
S.F. _____ storage insurance that is delivered, issued for delivery, 1 continued, or renewed in this state on or after July 1, 2020. 2 EXPLANATION 3 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 4 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 5 This bill relates to self-service storage insurance. The 6 bill prohibits an owner or endorsee from soliciting or selling 7 self-service storage insurance (insurance) unless the owner 8 is licensed as a self-service storage insurance limited lines 9 producer (limited lines producer) and the solicitation or sale 10 of the insurance is in conjunction with or incidental to an 11 occupant’s rental of storage space at a self-service storage 12 facility (facility). “Self-service storage insurance” is 13 defined in the bill as insurance providing coverage for the 14 loss of, or damage to, personal property that is contained in 15 a storage space at a facility, or is in transit to or from the 16 storage space, during the term of a rental agreement covering 17 an occupant’s use of storage space at the facility. A license 18 is not required for an owner to display promotional information 19 regarding insurance to occupants and prospective occupants. 20 “Owner”, “endorsee”, “self-service storage facility”, 21 “occupant”, “personal property”, and “rental agreement” are 22 also defined in the bill. 23 An owner or endorsee that has solicited or sold insurance 24 before July 1, 2020, must obtain a limited lines producer 25 license on or before October 1, 2020, to continue to solicit or 26 sell insurance. Any owner or endorsee that begins to solicit 27 or sell insurance on or after July 1, 2020, must obtain a 28 limited lines producer license prior to soliciting or selling 29 insurance. The application and licensing requirements for 30 an owner to obtain a limited lines producer license, and the 31 conditions and limitations imposed on endorsees, are contained 32 in the bill. 33 At any location where insurance is offered to occupants or 34 prospective occupants, written or electronic documents must 35 -8- LSB 5656XC (1) 88 ko/rn 8/ 10
S.F. _____ be available to the occupants or prospective occupants and 1 must include a summary of the material terms of the insurance 2 coverage as outlined in the bill. The documents are not 3 subject to filing with, or requiring the approval of, the 4 commissioner. The bill defines “location” as any physical 5 location in this state, or any internet site, call center site, 6 or other location at which an owner engages in transactions 7 related to a facility located in this state. 8 An endorsee cannot be paid directly by an insurer, and 9 an owner cannot pay an endorsee commission, or compensate 10 an endorsee based primarily on the number of occupants the 11 endorsee enrolls for insurance. An owner may, however, include 12 an endorsee’s performance related to soliciting or selling 13 insurance to occupants in an overall performance incentive 14 compensation program the owner offers all endorsees. 15 The bill allows all charges for insurance on a master, 16 corporate, group, or individual basis to be billed and 17 collected by the owner or an endorsee. The owner may receive 18 compensation for performing billing and collection services if 19 the owner itemizes the charges for the insurance separately on 20 an occupant’s bill if any charges for the insurance are not 21 included in the costs associated with the occupant’s rental of 22 storage space; or the owner clearly and conspicuously discloses 23 to the occupant that the charges for insurance are included 24 with the storage space rental. 25 All funds received by an owner from an occupant for insurance 26 must be considered funds held in trust by the owner in a 27 fiduciary capacity for the benefit of the insurer that issues 28 the insurance. An owner that bills and collects such funds 29 is not required to maintain the funds in a segregated account 30 if the owner is authorized by the insurer to hold the funds 31 in an alternate manner, or the owner remits the funds to a 32 supervising entity as required by the supervising entity, if 33 applicable. “Supervising entity” is defined in the bill as a 34 person licensed as an insurance producer who is appointed by an 35 -9- LSB 5656XC (1) 88 ko/rn 9/ 10
S.F. _____ insurer to supervise the administration of self-service storage 1 insurance at an owner’s locations. 2 The bill gave the commissioner the authority to suspend, 3 revoke, or refuse to issue or renew an owner’s limited 4 lines producer license. The commissioner must adopt rules 5 as necessary to implement and administer the provisions of 6 the bill, and may take any action within the commissioner’s 7 authority to enforce compliance with the provisions of the 8 bill. 9 The provisions of the bill are applicable to self-service 10 storage insurance that is delivered, issued for delivery, 11 continued, or renewed in this state on or after July 1, 2020. 12 -10- LSB 5656XC (1) 88 ko/rn 10/ 10